It’s time to fire up the grill, my friends. It’s party time. This awesome weather is BEGGING for a cookout, and we’re making this one incredibly easy by grilling up some Oscar Mayer hot dogs. I’ve always been a big hot dog fan. Growing up in the Chicago area, I often enjoyed them in the bleachers of Wrigley field, watching the Cubs bat the ball around, or in the seats of Arlington Park hoping my horse would come in first. I often go for a Chicago-style dog, but in my heart, and stomach, I hold a very special place for a good old cheese dog. But not just any cheese dog.

I’m talking about a Nacho Dog.

There is something extraordinary about the combination of tangy, slightly spicy nacho cheese drizzled over the top of a perfectly grilled hot dog. Top the whole thing with extra pickled jalapeno peppers and crushed tortilla chips and what you have is nothing short of spectacular.

So that’s exactly what we’re serving up today – The Ultimate Summer Nacho Dog. Let’s do this together, shall we? For the love of hot dogs. First thing you gotta do is run down to Walmart and grab yourself a package of Oscar Mayer hot dogs. I’ll wait right here for you. Walmart has a HUGE selection of Oscar Mayer hot dogs. Here was my selection.

Oscar Mayer hot dogs use no artificial preservatives, no nitrates, and no fillers, making your hot dog choice a no-brainer. They’re now available at Walmart, so grab them up!

You don’t need a ton of ingredients to make The Ultimate Summer Nacho Dogs. All you need are a few packages of Oscar Mayer hot dogs, buns, pickled jalapeno peppers, diced tomato if you’d like, tortilla chips and your homemade nacho cheese ingredients.

Putting it all together is easy enough. Aside from grilling the hot dogs and crushing a few tortilla chips, you only need to make the nacho cheese, which takes about 5 minutes, or possibly 10 if you’re a slow cook like me.

We’re making our nacho cheese from scratch because that’s just how I roll. And! I’m going to share with you a little secret that will bring your homemade nacho cheese over the top. It’s something I learned years ago when I managed a movie theater. I started off as an usher and also worked concessions. At the time, the cheddar cheese came in a can that we poured into a warmer. We turned it instantly to nacho cheese by pouring in pickled jalapeno peppers and the pickling juice. The brine adds a vinegary tang and enough salt that you really don’t need anything else. That’s how we’re doing it today, though we aren’t using canned cheese.

So let’s get to work!

How to Make Homemade Nacho Cheese

First, start by melting a couple tablespoons of butter in a pan. Swirl in a couple tablespoons of flour and let it cook a couple minutes. The mixture will start to foam up.

Next, slowly whisk in a cup of milk. Keep stirring and simmering, until the whole thing thickens enough to coat a spoon. It should only take a couple minutes.

Reduce the heat to very low and stir in 8 ounces of shredded cheddar cheese a bit at a time. Keep stirring until all of the cheese is melted. It should be very creamy.

Finally, stir in about ¼ cup of jalapeno pickling liquid from a jar of pickled jalapeno peppers. I like to toss in a few of the pickled jalapeno peppers, too. Why? Mike’s #JalapenoObsession.

Ladies and gentleman, you now have yourself some awesome homemade nacho cheese! Yes! Life is good.

Keep the cheese warm while you’re grilling up your hot dogs. Fire up that grill to medium heat and lightly oil the grates. Toss those hot dogs on and give them a nice char.

Set the buns onto the grill as well to give them a light toasting. When it’s all ready, slip those gorgeous dogs into the buns, top them with melty nacho cheese, a light (or heavy!) dusting of crushed tortilla chips, and a healthy portion of pickled jalapeno peppers. I sometimes go a little crazy and accidentally bury my dogs in jalapenos, but hey! I’m crazy like that. Add on some diced tomato, too, so the jalapenos aren’t so lonely on top.

I hope you enjoy your nacho dogs! Don’t forget, head on over to Walmart this summer and stock up on Oscar Mayer hot dogs. You know you want these!

The Ultimate Summer Nacho Dog – Recipe

Ingredients

1 package Oscar Mayer hot dogs – 8 hot dogs

FOR THE HOMEMADE NACHO CHEESE

2 tablespoons butter

2 tablespoons flour

1 cup milk

8 ounces shredded cheddar cheese

¼ cup pickled jalapeno juice (or more as needed)

Salt to taste

FOR SERVING

Pickled jalapeno slices

Crushed corn tortillas

Diced tomato, if desired

8 lightly toasted buns

Cooking Directions

Make the cheese first by heating a pan or pot to medium heat. Add butter and melt.

Stir in flour and whisk to incorporate. Cook about a minute. The mixture will foam up a bit.

Reduce heat to low. Slowly whisk in milk and simmer while whisking until the mixture thickens, about 2-3 minutes.

Stir in the cheese a bit at a time until all of the cheese is melted and very creamy.

Stir in pickled jalapeno juice. Keep warm.

Heat grill to medium heat. Add hot dogs and grill them a couple minutes per side, until you get some nice char marks.

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Hi, Everyone! It is nice to meet you. Welcome to Chili Pepper Madness, the food blog run by Mike and Patty Hultquist, a couple of spicy food lovers. Chili Pepper Madness is a special tribute to all things chili peppers, including chili pepper recipes... LEARN MORE ABOUT US